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A huge rooftop photovoltaic system has been installed by glass packaging specialist Stölzle-Oberglas on eight warehouses in Austria. Supplied by local company Oekosolar PV, each of the eight PV systems has a nominal output of approximately 200 kW peak, so a total of 1.6 MW peak, which corresponds to 25% of the electrical power required by the glass plant at peak times.

AGC has been an industry leader in the research, development and production of automotive on-glass antennas for over 40 years. Recently, the group has commissioned anechoic chambers at its R&D facility in Gosselies, Belgium, thereby completing a tri-polar R&D framework for automotive on-glass antennas in Japan, the USA and Europe.

One of the world’s most prestigious mouth-blown crystal glass producers has placed an order for a ZIPPE batch plant. France’s Cristalleries de Saint-Louis manufactures traditional, ornate and elaborately decorated crystal glass that is polished, engraved and decorated with 24 carat gold or platinum, alongside a series of modern designs.

In a booming market, Vetropack Group increased its net glass packaging sales by 9.4% in the 2018 fiscal year, reaching CHF 690.7 million. Unit sales rose over the same period by 1.8% to 5.16 billion units.

The group’s consolidated EBIT improved by 22.3% compared with the previous year, reaching CHF 78.4 million. The EBIT margin, at 11.3% of net sales, was well above the previous year’s figure of 10.1%. These trends were the result of ever-increasing production capacity, improved production efficiency and a market environment that remained consistently positive.

Furnace Solutions and the preceding SGT Training Day will again be held in Stoke-on-Trent, UK on 5 and 6 June 2019. A full programme of speakers has already been organised for the Furnace Solutions Conference on 6 June. EME’s Sebastian Woltz, for example, will discuss the challenges facing a batch plant supplier when a batch plant is upgraded.

Owens-Illinois Inc has confirmed an important investment in its European glass operation, supported by long-term customer agreements. This investment will enable O-I to grow in premium segments, increase capability and flexibility, as well as improve the company's environmental footprint.